The Play

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Um Up By One, 48 Seconds Left. What Happened Next Changed It All For 'canes.

December 30, 2001|By Ted Hutton Staff Writer

Seventeen years and 363 days later, Kenny Calhoun can still put himself back in the end zone of the Orange Bowl on that humid night.

Time has done nothing to diminish the clarity and vividness of his memory, for Calhoun was about to be involved in a play that would decide the outcome of what was arguably the best college game ever played.

A 20-year-old strong safety for the University of Miami, Calhoun and the other players on the field were struggling to stand straight and get their breaths.

There were 48 seconds left in the game, and the players for Miami and Nebraska were drained by a contest that had been both brutal and emotional.

They stood toe to toe gathering enough energy to run one more play, the one that would mean so many things once it was decided.

But the focus was on the 2 yards Nebraska needed to move the football to earn a two-point conversion.Calhoun sucked in more air and listened to the defensive call.

The score was Miami 31, Nebraska 30.

If the play was successful, Nebraska, billed as the Team of the Century coming into that 1984 Orange Bowl game, would be 13-0 and national champions.

If the play failed, the Hurricanes would be 11-1 and win their first national title in a staggering upset.

After more than 59 minutes of play and 600 yards of combined offense, the game was down to one last battle over 90 inches of turf.

Calhoun watched the Cornhuskers come to the line. His eyes were on wide receiver Irving Fryar.

If Fryar did what Miami coaches thought he would, Calhoun would be responsible for covering tailback Jeff Smith coming out of the backfield.

There would not be much time for Calhoun to make his decision. Watch Fryar long enough to be sure the free safety would take him, and then get on Smith.

The Orange Bowl crowd was on its feet, where the thousands of fans had spent most of the game. Calhoun took a deep breath and got into his crouch. Turner Gill started the count.

The dominoes fell

What the ensuing years have provided is some perspective, and what stands out about the game is how untarnished it remains.

Sports Illustrated called it the Miracle In Miami, and even that doesn't sound like a stretch.

Nebraska really did have a team that is on a very short nomination list for Team of the Century. In addition to Fryar and Gill, Heisman Trophy winner Mike Rozier was the running back, and lineman Dean Steinkuhler opened holes for him.

Finding a game that was as equally thrilling as it was significant will take a long, long search.

The game changed the course of football at Miami and in the state of Florida.

Many things had to fall Miami's way for that final play to have the meaning it did.

Jack Fernandez, a linebacker for UM, remembers being at a hotel listening to the Cotton Bowl, which was the first of the big bowl games played Jan. 2.

Texas was No. 2, and if the Longhorns beat Georgia, and No. 5 UM beat No. 1 Nebraska, the Longhorns probably would have been voted national champs.

"I remember the hotel had this courtyard, and you could hear everyone yelling or moaning after every play," Fernandez recalled. "Then there was this huge yell when Georgia won. Right then I had a feeling. I knew we were going to win."

"It was really amazing that day," said Howard Schnellenberger, who was in his fifth season as UM coach. "The excitement built game by game."

During the team meal, another team ranked ahead of the Hurricanes lost, as UCLA beat No. 4 Illinois in the Rose Bowl.